


Corona

by Skylark



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: F/F, Falling In Love, Parfaits, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-12
Updated: 2019-11-12
Packaged: 2021-01-20 14:00:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21282866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skylark/pseuds/Skylark
Summary: "It has to be around here somewhere," Eli says. Her hair is brilliant gold in the midafternoon sun, her posture thoughtlessly perfect. She sets a quick pace, but slows now and again as she peers at storefronts, mouthing the kanji pronunciations to herself.Nozomi trails a step or two behind, her hands clutching the strap of her bookbag.—The summer of their first year.
Relationships: Ayase Eli/Toujou Nozomi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 40
Collections: Femslash Exchange 2019





	Corona

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SophieAyase](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SophieAyase/gifts).

> It's been a while since I watched Love Live, so I went to do a canon refresh. "I'll only watch the episodes that highlight Nozomi and Eli," I thought to myself. I ended up watching both seasons and the movie and wept the whole time because I love mu's so much, and especially these two girls, my queen otp. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to recall so many fond memories. (And there's a mu's comeback in January 2020?!) I wanted to write you so much more, but I ran out of time. Still, I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed researching and writing it.
> 
> Beta-read by the lovely [Ethereally](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ethereally/pseuds/Ethereally).

"It has to be around here somewhere," Eli says. Her hair is brilliant gold in the midafternoon sun, her posture thoughtlessly perfect. She sets a quick pace, but slows now and again as she peers at storefronts, mouthing the kanji pronunciations to herself.

Nozomi trails a step or two behind, her hands clutching the strap of her bookbag.

The two of them had been planning this outing since lunchtime, earlier in the day. Eli leaned over their pushed-together desks, bright-eyed in a way that was slowly becoming more frequent the longer they were friends. She said that on a phone call the night before, her grandmother had mentioned a sweets shop she'd loved when she attended Otonokizaka herself. "She said it's not too far from here," Eli said. "Come with me?"

Nozomi had been hoping to talk about something else at lunch, but at the eagerness in Eli's voice, she held her tongue. Instead, she smiled at her, then lifted an apple slice from her bento and pushed it against Eli's lips. Her smile widened as Eli blinked, then opened her mouth to accept it without question. "Of course I'll come with you," she said.

Now they've been looking for half an hour down Akihabara's winding back streets, pushing their way through the dense after-school crowd: students looking to blow off steam, curious tourists wanting to experience the Electric Town for themselves, and adult hobbyists ducking into shops here and there. There's still no sign of the store, and the heat is radiating off the asphalt in waves, slowing Nozomi's steps.

"Maybe it's closed," she says.

Eli shakes her head stubbornly. "Grandmother said they even opened other stores, so I'm sure they're still in business now. We can find it."

"I'm sorry I'm not more help," Nozomi murmurs. "I don't usually come this way."

Something in Nozomi's voice makes Eli turn. She blinks, looking at Nozomi as if for the first time, taking in her flushed face and the tired slump of her shoulders. "Oh, Nozomi," she says, worried. "Have I been walking too fast? I'm sorry I didn't notice."

Nozomi hurries forward until she's standing beside Eli. "No, it's fine," she says, pulling up a smile. "It's just hot."

"It is," Eli says with a grimace. "Why don't we take a break and get something cool? My treat."

"But the shop—"

"We can find it another time," Eli says, taking Nozomi's hand in hers.

They walk slower, pushing their way through the crowds, Eli's sure steps clearing a path for Nozomi as they go. Nozomi trusts Eli to find their way, leaving her free to look at the storefronts herself.

"Oh! Eli!" she cries out, pointing with her free hand. Now she's the one pulling, dragging Eli across the street. "That's it, isn't it? The shop!"

Eli gasps behind her and then she's eagerly pushing forward too, the two of them trotting beside each other. "It's just like grandmother described it!" she says. "We found it!"

"We found it!" Nozomi echoes, laughing, as they make it inside. They're welcomed by a blast of air-conditioned air and the cheerful greeting of the shopkeeper.

"Eli, look, they have parfaits," Nozomi says, clutching Eli's arms. They order two and head to the back of the shop to sit and eat, the old wooden floor squeaking as they go.

Nozomi takes her first bite and her face scrunches up with delight. "So delicious," she sighs.

"Let me try," Eli says. Nozomi nods, picking up a spoonful without thinking about it and lifting it to Eli's mouth.

Eli's cheeks color and she glances around. At once, Nozomi realizes her misstep—this isn't Otonokizaka, an all-girls' school where half the school shares bentos and Nozomi's probably shared indirect kisses with the entire student body. They're in the middle of one of Tokyo's most bustling districts, surrounded by strangers. Nozomi starts to reconsider, but before she can start to pull back Eli has already leaned forward to take a bite. 

Her blue eyes widen, round as marbles, as she licks her lips. "Delicious," Eli says, bringing a hand to cover her mouth.

"Isn't it?" Nozomi says with a smile, gently tipping her head to the side. "Let me try yours, too."

Nozomi's always giving Eli bites, but this is new territory, too. Her voice trembles just a little at the end of the sentence, so she brightens her smile to make up for it. She's acutely aware of Eli's eyes on her, and the silence that lingers just a heartbeat too long.

Then Eli is picking out a spoonful for her, too, carefully balancing all the ingredients just like Nozomi did. Nozomi leans forward and Eli feeds it to her carefully, one hand cupping under the spoon to catch any potential drips.

Her parfait was a swirl of berries and jelly; Eli's is more tropical, bursts of pineapple and mango. She bites down on the pieces of fruit and leans back, closing her eyes so she doesn't have to see what expression Eli is making. "It's good too," she says. "You made a good choice, Eli."

"I think I like yours better," Eli says.

Nozomi opens her eyes and their gazes lock. Eli looks almost shy, her body language pulling inward. Nozomi remembers their lunch together earlier, the way she'd been the one who had held back what she'd wanted to ask. Nozomi blinks and then the words spill out of her: "Come over."

Eli's brow furrows. "What?"

"Stay over tonight," Nozomi says, her mind rapidly catching up to her tongue. "I wanted to ask you if you could help at the shrine this week, too. We always get more visitors over summer break, but one of the shrine maidens caught a cold so we're short."

Eli's body language relaxes as she thinks about it. Nozomi feels less silly as she sees Eli calm; instead she feels more eager, and a little nervous, too. She's never invited her over before.

She's never invited anyone over before.

"I didn't bring pajamas or anything," Eli says. 

"You can borrow mine," Nozomi says. "We can buy a toothbrush from the convenience store on the way. Though…now that I think about it, I don't know how to get back to my house from here."

"We're not actually far from the main street," Eli says. "It just felt like that because we went through a lot of side streets. I can get us back to somewhere you recognize, and you can lead from there."

"We have to visit again," Eli gushes as they leave the shop. The jingle of the storefront door follows them back into the heat. Nozomi's hands start to wander back to their habitual clutch on her bag but before her right hand can get there, Eli takes it like it's the easiest thing in the world.

Nozomi's heart squeezes helplessly; her left hand squeezes the bag strap. She wants to memorize this moment: the flashing flicker of Eli's smile as she glances over her shoulder, the steady strength of her dancer's back, the grip of their entwined fingers. The sun beats down on her exposed neck, occasionally criss-crossed by the shadow of the power lines twisting overhead. As they follow the winding street she thinks, _I would follow her to the end of the world, if I could._


End file.
